Familiar faces: These players on postseason rosters played Minor League Baseball in Norwich

Before they ever took a Major League field, a number of players participating in this year’s postseason played Minor League Baseball right here in Norwich.

And some of these players have some impressive stats and have gone on to appear in All-Star Games and have competed against some of the biggest stars in baseball today.

But before all of that, these players played for the Connecticut Tigers of the New York-Penn League, playing their home games at Dodd Stadium. They had dreams of being Major League Baseball players, dreams that have since come true.

Here are five players in this year’s Major League Baseball postseason who played Minor League Baseball in Norwich.

Tarik Skubal

A Connecticut Tiger in 2018 , Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers has had a phenomenal 2024 season up to this point. He was an all-star and led the American League in wins, strikeouts and earned run average.

Skubal continued his success Tuesday by pitching six scoreless innings in Game 1 of the American League Wild Card Series against the Houston Astros . He earned the win and the Detroit Tigers defeated Houston 3-1. As of early Wednesday afternoon, the Tigers led the Wild Card Series 1-0.

Riley Greene

Like his Detroit Tigers teammate Tarik Skubal, Riley Greene was also an American League all-star this season. On Tuesday, he went 1 for 5 with a double.

Greene played for the Connecticut Tigers in 2019 shortly after he was drafted by the Detroit Tigers with the fifth overall pick that June.

Kerry Carpenter

Detroit Tigers outfielder Kerry Carpenter played for the Connecticut Tigers in 2019 . Carpenter played four games for the Connecticut Tigers, going 3 for 18 with one run batted in.

Joe Jiménez

Joe Jiménez, now of the Atlanta Braves , pitched for the Connecticut Tigers in 2014 . He was named an American League all-star with the Detroit Tigers in 2018.

Gregory Soto

Baltimore Orioles pitcher Gregory Soto played for the Connecticut Tigers in 2015 and 2016 . He earned All-Star Game selections in 2021 and 2022 while he was playing with the Detroit Tigers.

This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: Familiar faces: These players on postseason rosters played Minor League Baseball in Norwich